Chapter 6 — The French company paid me 2,000 yuan, the next day the entire chain was paralyzed

Only his eyes - deep as the bottom of the sea, cold as ice and snow - were glued to the text on the screen. Tens of seconds passed. The entire meeting room held its breath and waited. Pierre felt like every second was a knife cutting into his neck. Then finally… the CEO opened his mouth. Just one word. A single word: That word fell like a sledgehammer, shattering all the last illusions in Pierre's head. He suddenly understood - completely and painfully: Compared to the company's huge benefits, the self-esteem of a project manager like him... was not worth a penny. He is not “irreplaceable”. Not a “pillar of management”. Not “important person”. He was just a pawn, and now a pawn — an item to be sacrificed, in exchange for the return of a girl he once despised to the core. Pierre's career. Pierre's honor. His entire life — Completely collapsed... just because he dared to look down on the wrong person. But that girl, just needs... a few words. The next morning, right on time, I received two things in my email. First: a PDF of the apology letter. The opening is the company's official title, clearly stamped in red. The content inside frankly admitted: in the matter of my salary, they took advantage of contract loopholes, applied deceitful and humiliating measures, directly harming me personally. In the letter, they expressed their “most sincere apologies” for their short-sightedness, arrogance, and lack of respect for me. At the end of the letter are the electronic signatures of Pierre and Mary, two names who once thought they were above everything. The recipient list is sent CC to all French branch employees. I can easily imagine the scene taking place in that building right now. All vague rumors, all whispers behind people's backs, now have the clearest and most official answer. Second: a transfer notification from a Swiss bank. Two million euros, not a penny short, have been transferred to the newly opened account I designated. Right after that, the phone vibrated. It was Leo texting. The content is just one word — accompanied by a series of exclamation points:

“Vi, you are so amazing！！！！！！”

I laughed, my fingers flying across the screen. Then, close the laptop and pull the suitcase out of the closet. It's time to return to Paris. But this time... it's not a silent retreat, but a return of the victor. When I stepped foot back into that familiar office building, the whole atmosphere of the company... completely changed. The receptionist saw me and quickly stood up, his face mixed with tension and respect. I strode through the hallway, every passing employee instinctively stopped, their eyes looking at me were full of complexity: curiosity, admiration, fear, but absolutely no contempt. Pierre stood waiting at the door of the lab — like a dog whose spirit had been drained from him. Her face was pale, her eyes were sunken, and in just a few days she looked like she had aged ten years. Seeing me, his lips moved, about to say something... But in the end he just lowered his head, not daring to open his mouth. I passed him. Don't look. Not a single glance. Not a single greeting. I walked straight into the lab, where all the engineers were waiting. I stopped in the middle of the room, my eyes wandering around. The space was silent, so quiet that you could clearly hear each person's heartbeat. Then I raised my voice. Are not loud, but enough for everyone to hear every word clearly:

“From now on, until the problem is resolved…”

“…here, I am the one who decides.”

No need for names. No position needed. Just need ability — and bravery. That's enough to make an entire corporation... bow its head. Inside the central control room, the atmosphere was as thick as if it was about to freeze. More than thirty engineers stood behind me, holding their breath, staring at the back sitting in front of the main machine - those eyes, as if looking at the final savior. I sat straight in front of the console, both hands on the keyboard — but not typing yet.

“Before repairing the system, I will perform a comprehensive diagnostic.”

“I need to know, in the few days I've been away, what kinds of 'optimizations' you've done to my system."

The word "optimization" I intentionally emphasize each word. Behind me, the air trembled slightly. The sound of heavy breathing, the sound of swallowing saliva. Some people were starting to sweat. I didn't bother to look back. Fingers began to quickly glide across the keyboard. Each command line appears continuously.